Browsing: AFDB investments

• Africa Development Bank (AfDB) has launched the Africa Fertilizer Financing Mechanisms (AFFM) to boost purchase of the critical farm input across the continent.
• The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warns that Africa is spending less on agriculture development than the rest of the world.
• AFFM has already secured $10.15 million in new funding from the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD).

Shortage of fertilizer in Africa continues as the war between its main suppliers Russia and Ukraine enters the second year. To increase food productivity and security, African countries need increased access to fertilizer, nut until this dilemma is resolved, food security is off the table.

Access to fertilizer in Africa is very limited, where available, this basic agro-input for increased production is simply too expensive for effective use.

Such shortcomings were meant to be addressed by progressive initiatives such as the Maputo Agreement that was signed in Mozambique in …

• The future of agriculture is digital not the hand-hoe
• The more efficient a farm is, the more productive it becomes without necessarily increasing land size.
• AfDB awards US$140,000 in grants to AgriPitch competition winners

Agriculture development for food security and poverty reduction cannot be realized without the adaptation of digital solutions.

Digital solutions offer more effective traceability, compliance and farm management systems which make the commercial, large or small, much more effective. In these modern times of food scarcity in the face of ever-increasing demand, efficiency is the name of the game.

The more efficient a farm is, the more productive it becomes without necessarily increasing land size or the amount of crops or animals.

“When it comes to subsistence agriculture, digital transformation is no longer a choice – it’s a need. You can either go digital or disappear,” warns Simon Winter, Executive Director at Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture …

Against all odds, Africa is enjoying faster economic growth than the rest of the world, and it will continue to do so for the next foreseeable future. This is according to the latest review by the Africa Development Bank (AfDB) which projects that the continent’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will grow 4% annually, on average, much better than the global average.

Released in Abidjan, Africa’s Macroeconomic Performance and Outlook Report indicates that in the medium-term, most regions in Africa will have moderate to strong economic performance.

“Despite facing significant headwinds due to global socio-economic shocks, all the five regions on the continent remain resilient with a steady outlook,” the report reassures stakeholders.

Also Read: Financing SMEs: Basis for impressive economic outlook

However, the report does highlight some red flags to watch out for that will require robust monetary and fiscal measures and structural policies.

The report is released at the …

There is need to rebrand Africa, to give it a better, truer image or in the words of the President for the African Development Bank (AfDB)) Dr Akinwumi A. Adesina to change the narrative on Africa to attract increased investments into the continent.

Granted the head of AfDB specified the Africa rebranding be specific for the USA but the idea stands true in general, the World needs to see Africa differently. The assertion comes ahead of the upcoming “Africa Investment Forum 2021.’

To be held this December (1-3), the event is one of the biggest flagship initiatives of the African Development Bank that is designed to attract billions of dollars in investment for strategic development projects across the continent.

“The annual forum has come to be an invaluable platform during which the Bank successfully attracts critical investment for the continent’s infrastructure, agriculture and health care system needs among others, especially …

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun14 – The African Development Bank (AfDB) has unveiled a US$463.9 million 5.5-year Kangaroo bond.

In a statement, AfDB says the transaction, which marks its return to the Australian dollar bond market, was led by Nomura and RBC Capital Markets.

The fixed income instrument, which is a foreign bond issued in the Australian market by non-Australian firms and is denominated in Australian currency, is the institution’s first benchmark Kangaroo since early 2018 and its first in the mid-curve since 2015.

It is also the largest AUD trade ever issued by the Bank.

More than 30 investors participated in the deal, with a total order book of more than A$775 million, leading to an upsize of the trade from the announced size of A$250-300 million to the final size of A$600 million.

These included a strong cohort of Australian investors, while fund managers were the major investor type.

African …

The African Development Bank climate finance continuous to gain ground as the bank in 2019, committed 3.5 billion across the continent to finance climate change mitigation and adaptation projects.

This is according to the Multilateral Development Bank (MDB) Climate Finance Report 2020, which noted that AFDB’s climate financing mostly targeted renewable energy and resilient agriculture sectors.

According to the report, the climate financing represents 35 per cent of the total the 2019 approvals of projects worth US$ 10.2 billion, representing an increase of 0.3 per cent over 2018 and 26 per cent over 2016.

“As African economies face the devastating effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, relaxing action or redirecting financial resources away from climate change will further exacerbate these impacts in diverse and complex ways,” said Anthony Nyong, AfDB Director for Climate Change and Green Growth.

The pan-African financial institution in its report on climate finance published in 2019 pledged …